Old Dutch – the lock-out is over

General Nov 10, 2009 The Waffle 1 Comment Remember when I told you to stop eating Old Dutch potato chips? I  am sure you all complied. The lock-out is over.  You can now indulge again and enjoy the tasty taters.  Why is the lock-out over? The Alberta Labour Relations Board  has determined that the province’s labour legislation was interfering with the constitutional rights of workers, and has suspended the months-long lockout of UFCW Canada Local 401 members by Old Dutch Foods. The ruling established a Rand Formula type of union security for members there for the first time  in Alberta. The Alberta government has 12 months to revise the province’s labour code. The lockout officially ended after 227 days on the picket line, the second-longest dispute in Local 401’s history. The full labour board decision is here.   .

Read more!

Du pouding au pain!

Recipes Nov 8, 2009 The Waffle 3 Comments We had a loaf of bread which wasn’t getting any fresher. The week before, we had bought a loaf of chocolate and coffee bread made with egg dough. From Artisan Baker Grains de Vie in St-André-Avelin, it is made with half-sweetened black chocolate and reina michim fair trade coffee. At 5.50$ a loaf, it is not cheap, but it is a very dense bread. Toasted, with butter, it is perfect. As you can imagine, we didn’t want to waste it. So I had the idea of making a Quebec classic: a bread pudding. It is simple and delicious. Ingredients Half a loaf of bread, roughly diced 750 ml of milk 250 ml of brown sugar  5 eggs  A few drops of vanilla extract  Butter Warm milk in a pot, then dissolve brown sugar in it; Distribute the bread pieces evenly in a baking dish; Remove…

Read more!

No bones about it!

Restaurant Nov 1, 2009 The Waffle No Comments Today you can eat for free at KFC! Yes, for free! KFC Canada is giving away a quarter of a million Boneless Chicken Fillets!! The new premium, all-white meat, skinless, boneless, chicken(less?) fillet features Colonel Harland Sanders’ Original Recipe of 11 herbs and spices. “We are extremely excited about giving away a quarter of a million chicken fillets during our nationwide Chicken Fillet Giveaway – one of the largest free product offers in KFC Canada’s 57-year history,” said Steve Langford, president of Priszm Income Fund, the largest KFC Canada franchisee. Not as excited as I am, Steve!!!  Tell me more! “The new Boneless Chicken Fillet is so fantastic that we want thousands of Canadians to try it as soon as possible and for free. I am certain that customers will love the new Boneless Chicken Fillet so much that they will soon…

Read more!

Talking of McDonald’s (II)

Restaurant Oct 29, 2009 The Waffle 2 Comments Every year, McDonald’s comes back with its Monopoly contest. And every year, I basically do not play.  But after a hard day’s work on Jean-Claude Rocheleau’s campaign and after dropping by my friend’s to catch the remainder of the hockey game, I knew this could be a special night. I dropped by the McDonald’s location on Sherbrooke West, near the Big “O” and ordered a Big Mac Trio. With my food, I got two game pieces. The goal of McDonald’s Monopoly is to find a rare game piece that will give you the opportunity to  win big, and then to find the not-so-rare partner(s) of said rare piece. The complete rules are here. Did I get lucky? Well, kind of. My first pieces gave me instant prizes, along with properties. I won a Small Barq’s Root Beer, value $1,39; beating the 1…

Read more!

A case for the Casa

Restaurant Oct 28, 2009 The Waffle 1 Comment I came down to Hochelaga today to help Jean-Claude Rocheleau‘s team to plan and execute the final stretch of the by-election campaign. After a briefing on where things were at – and things are looking pretty good – I had a lunch meeting with the campaign director.  Location? Two steps from the HQ: The New Casa de la Pizza. And what is the specialty of the New Casa de la Pizza?  Why, Pizza! The place was not very busy, and since it is fairly big, we had no trouble to pick a quiet corner. A tv was showing the highlights from yesterday’s hockey games. Before we started discussing further the strategy and the communication plan for the reminder of the campaign, we peered at the menu.  The campaign manager picked the classic pizza-ceasar combo. Me, I had no choice but to go with the Spéciale…

Read more!